Double Vision
by LobaLu
Summary: Naminé told me that I wouldn't disappear—that I would be whole. But since when does having to share a brain and a body with another kid make me whole? Plus, I'm starting to get the feeling that I'm not alone in here. How many hostages can one heart hold?
1. Chapter 1: Contact

A/N: This is written from Roxas's point of view. I'll warn you now that it's a little unusual. Since Roxas is sharing a body with someone else, you'll see "we" and "our" in place of "I" and "my" fairly frequently. Hope it's not too confusing.

Also, it's full of 358/2 Days and Kingdom Hearts II spoilers. You'll need some sort of prior knowledge of both of these games to make much sense of this.

Anyway, hope you enjoy!

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Chapter One: Contact

He didn't really know I was there. Or at least I don't _think_ he did.

But I knew. I was only too aware of where I was and where I wasn't… And I could feel the sun on his skin, taste the sultry ocean air on his tongue, and hear the sounds of the island around him. It was like they were _ours_ instead of just _his,_ because he shared them all with me, completely unaware.

Of course, the things we shared would never be _quite_ as much mine as they were his. The waves. Rushing in and out, in and out. The sun. Beating down on us, drawing blood up to pool beneath our skin. _Our_ skin, because I could feel it too.

We tanned easily. We were probably at least two shades darker already. But Kairi—poor Kairi—she was probably burnt. She carried the fair-skinned curse of most redheads, if not the freckles.

We sat up and leaned over, extending a hand toward her relaxed figure—then thought better of it. Or at least _he_ did. _I_ would have followed through—I wasn't a pansy like he was. But he had absolute control over everything we did and said. I was just a passenger.

"Kairi," we said, and we removed the wayward hand and put it behind our head. "Wake up."

The words flooded through the fountain of our brain until they popped out on our tongue; I had no control of them once they were that far_. _But I could try to convince him of what he was going to say before he actually said it. Because he could hear my thoughts, and I could hear his.

_Kiss her cheek_, I thought. _Look, it's all pink and hot from the sun… you know how good it would taste... _

Not that I had any personal interest in the girl, but Sora's constant indecision was irritating. After all, I had to witness it on a daily basis. And it was really getting old.

Sometimes he listened to me, but most of the time, like now, for instance, my thought was followed by a stern mental rebuff and an internal shake of the head. I could taste a little fear in the tenor of his thoughts. And I would have sighed, if I could have.

How could he _possibly_ still be worried about rejection? Wasn't it obvious that—

"Kairi." We laughed lightly, but his concern for the girl bounced around our brain. "C'mon. You're gonna be fried."

She took a couple quick, startled breaths, and her heavy lashes drew back, revealing a confused pair of oceanic eyes. After a brief glance around her, she seemed to remember where she was, and let her head fall back to the wadded-up beach towel that she was using for a pillow. "Mmm…" She sighed, and drew her arms above her head in a long, soothing stretch. "I'm awake…" She closed her eyes again. A few strands of dark, lustrous red hair clung to her cheek.

If I'd had a brain to myself, I wouldn't have been dwelling on all these exhausting details, just so you know. But Sora—I mean _really_—the kid was obsessed. You'd have thought this girl was Megan Fox. Don't get me wrong, she was nice to look at. She had these über-long, thick black eyelashes and _amazing_ legs—but yeah, like I said, not the kind of Hollywood hottie that should be able to take up three-fourths of your daily thought processes with ease.

"No, you're not either awake," we said. Sora's playful adoration colored our thoughts. "Let's get out of the sun. You and Riku have gotta be careful out here, or else you'll end up with skin cancer."

Her eyes popped open again, and a little frown twisted her lips. "Which is _so_ not fair," she pouted. She reached forward—our heart rate increased dramatically—and touched our warm, suntanned bicep. "I mean, really, how do you get so tan? And you never even burn or peel." Her lower lip stuck out. Was she really that upset over something as trivial as a tan? I mean _really_…

I waited for his subconscious agreement… but it never came. There was only silence, both within and outside of myself and himself. Kairi looked up, waiting for an answer.

But where was Sora? I found him ogling over the seemingly uninteresting feature that was her mouth; how the lips were so full, curvy, and glossy in the midday sun… so beautiful… so… succulent… And how the skin on her neck and pearly white shoulders would feel like satin beneath our hands…

_Woohoo? Earth to Sora..? _I thought impatiently.

That seemed to wake him up. "Um, what?" We asked.

She laughed a little—and I knew how much he loved the sound of it, because it felt like liquid sunshine was being poured into our brain and chest cavities.

"Nothing," Kairi said, wincing a little as she stood up. Feeling that burn, I'd bet.

She was wearing her usual mini-skirt and tank top, and when she moved her shoulders we could already see the slender white lines that her spaghetti straps had left on her skin. She would obsess about that later. But we would be sure to assure her that she looked great. Sora was pretty good about giving her compliments, even without my prompting.

But sometimes I felt like a babysitter that no one ever listens to. I guess that's what happens when you live on the sidelines of someone else's brain, though. You're just that one, tiny little voice—so much more obscure than a conscience—that comes out every once in a while to toss a thought out on center field for the star player to pick up. And if he does… great. If he doesn't… does it really matter?

We were walking toward the palm grove now, with Kairi by our side. I could feel how badly Sora wanted to hold her hand. It was that itchy, bite-your-lip type of feeling that is sure to spawn regret if you don't obey it. And the way she had her hand at her side, with her palm turned slightly outward… well, it was obvious enough that she felt the same way.

_Dude, grab her hand,_ I thought irritably. _Look, she wants you to. She even told you so, remember?_

We grimaced as memories of the initiation of their official "relationship" came to mind. It had been less than idyllic. In fact, Kairi had been the one who'd taken the first step.

We could still remember the day she'd gotten tired of waiting and had finally just kissed us herself—and we remembered how _he_ (I do _not_ take any credit for this) stood there like a deer in the headlights and let her run off on her own afterward, thinking that Sora wasn't interested in her after all. She'd been crying and stuff… ugh, what a mess _that_ had been. All because of a lack of communication…

And now that they were officially "together" as Selphie so casually phrased it, Kairi obviously _wanted_ him to hold her hand and treat her like his girlfriend. But he was still so careful about it that it was frustrating for both me and her.

_C'mon! _I thought impatiently.

_Okay, okay_, Sora seemed to agree. He initiated the deep breath that poured into our lungs—and then we reached out and caught her hand in ours. It was warm and oh-so-soft… like silk left out in the sun. On the beach. With the waves rushing in and out, in and out…

She turned and looked into straight into our eyes, smiling in a way that made our insides melt into an irresponsive puddle of goo.

And as she gazed into the windows of his soul, something in her eyes caught my attention.

_My_ attention. _Mine_. Not Sora's or anybody else's—because what I saw there was meant for me.

It was a bright white smile, and a flash of silvery-blonde hair falling in sheaves. _Roxas_, she thought.

Woa. There was no reaction from Sora… Did that mean he couldn't see or hear her?

_Roxas._ She thought it again, a little more desperately.

And in that moment I could recall her face so easily… probably because I was looking at Kairi's, and they were so much alike… but Naminé's had its own touch of originality—the subtle roundness around her chin, the wider space between her eyes. And her voice… it was amazing. It sounded just like you'd expect an angel's to.

These were things I'd noticed as a Nobody, but things that weren't so powerful to me at the time. Probably because my emotions hadn't been so intense. Though I could have sworn I'd felt at least _something_ for her…

_Naminé_, I thought, willing with all my might that the word might reach her. It _had_ to. I mean, Sora and Kairi had such a strong connection, and we lived inside of them, after all. When they were together like this, it was so much easier to remember Naminé—to see her face in my mind, to see the tips of blonde hair that tickled at her bare shoulders… And maybe she could remember me, too.

_Roxas, how are you?_ She thought. She sounded so concerned. Hearing her voice was a miracle in and of itself, but the fact that she was worried about me made me feel just as good. If that made any sense.

I answered carefully, trying to direct the thought to her rather than Sora. _I'm fine. What about you? Are you… happy? _What a stupid question; how could she be happy?

But she surprised me. _Oh, yes,_ she answered serenely. _Very much so._

How could that be? She was just as trapped as I was. But it would've been rude to call her out on it. _That's… good…_ I thought carefully.

Amusement flooded through her thoughts. She must've had some understanding as to how I really felt, despite my efforts to keep her in the dark. _Roxas,_ she began, _I was worried that you might be struggling with this… transition. But I just want you to know that I—_

But then a voice came smashing through our reveries—all four of them. "Sora! Kairi! You been on the beach, ya?" Sora and I almost jumped out of our skin.

It was Wakka. He was grinning and walking across the sand toward us, volleyball in hand. "Kairi, you look like a tomato," he added laughingly.

And suddenly, all traces of Naminé were gone. When our eyes flashed to Kairi's again, they were like a slate that had been wiped clean of all its hidden messages.

"Oh, great," Kairi said, putting a hand on her cheek to test its temperature. She sighed. "This really gonna hurt tomorrow."

"It'll hurt in ten minutes, probably," We said as we eyed her over. Wakka had hardly been exaggerating—the girl was _burnt_. I took note when Sora worriedly pulled our eyebrows together—not that I needed to know that to recognize his anxiety. His thoughts said it all.

Wakka, on the other hand, didn't seem overly concerned. "Hey listen, we're doing a bonfire here tonight, so you guys should stay for it, ya? We're gonna roast hot dogs and marshmallows."

Kairi's face lit up. "Oh. Hey, that'll be great! I don't have to work tonight!"

"Yeah, I'm not busy either," We added hastily.

_Your mom said you had to help her get the yard ready for tomorrow_, I reminded him. She was having some kind of barbecue.

Sora did a mental double take. _Crap_, he thought. _But I already said I wasn't busy… and I want to spend some time with Kairi before school starts, so… I think I'll stay._

_Your funeral_, I carelessly returned. Sora's mom was nice, but stern. We'd be in big trouble when we got home.

"Great," Wakka said eagerly. "Me and Tidus are gonna go back to the mainland and pick up the goods, okay?"

"M'kay," We said. Then as an afterthought, "Get lots of soda."

Wakka laughed. "Ya, man. Sure."

Suddenly, Tidus burst out of the trees. "Hey guys! Been looking for you everywhere," he said excitedly. Then, "Wow Kairi, you're really red!"

"So I've heard," Kairi said with a short, musical laugh.

Wakka chuckled, then said, "C'mon, Tidus. We gotta hurry if we want to make it back by seven. We still gotta invite Riku and Selphie."

"Okay. We'll be back in a bit," Tidus said, as he and Wakka moved toward the canoes that were tied up at the dock. Then an amusing idea seemed to occur to him, because he turned around and smirked at us. "You two be good while we're gone. Keep it P.G.," he said, wagging a finger at us.

Wakka laughed, and we scowled mutinously. I was sure Kairi must be blushing, but it was impossible to tell, because of the sunburn and also because of the fact that Sora didn't have his eyes on her directly. I could only see her in his peripheral vision.

Wakka and Tidus got in their canoes and paddled away. A touch of awkwardness hung in the air after Tidus's little comment; Kairi looked at her shoes and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. _Great_, I thought sarcastically. _Now it's up to Mr. Smooth to make things right again…_

Sora seemed to agree with my jab at his ineptitude. I felt blood rushing to our face. "So…" we said slowly, "What should we do… until they get back?"

Kairi shrugged. "Um, I dunno. What do you want to do?"

Sora pondered for a moment. I examined the ideas that bounced around in our brain as soon as he released them. Most of them sucked.

Sometimes I wondered what he would do without me. He didn't know I was here, but he'd sure know the difference if I wasn't.

_Should we just walk on the beach? Holding hands?_ He wondered.

_No, she's already been in the sun too long. _I curtly replied.

_Oh… right. Swimming? _

_You see any shade over the water? No._

_Well… maybe volleyball?_ A little hesitantly, because he wasn't really into sports.

_Sora! The net's on the beach! Sun-equals-bad, okay? Can you keep that in mind?_

_Well freak, what are you supposed to do on a tropical island that doesn't involve the sun, anyway?_

…_Maybe you could sit in the shade and share a snack,_ I thought slyly.

_Like what? I don't have any food._

_Like… that Paopu fruit you've been daydreaming about?_

_No! No way! _His reply was abrupt and juvenile—similar to the shout of a six-year-old who's been confronted by his friends for liking a cootie-infested girl. _Not yet anyway, _he added as an afterthought. _And… what if I suggested it, and she didn't even _want_ to… Oh, gosh, I would die._

_Okay, okay, _I thought irritably; why did he have to be so difficult? Then, with a touch of sarcasm, _Well then… how about checkers?_

He made us sigh, frustrated at direction our thoughts had taken—thinking they were his own thoughts and that the snide voice inside him was only his own self-disgust. _Ugh… I suck at this,_ he thought, rolling our eyes. _What am I supposed to say?_

"Sora?" Kairi asked, jarring us from thought. She frowned a little. Obviously wondering what we were thinking about.

"Oh, sorry," we said quickly. Our little mental exchange had only taken a few seconds—our thought processes were no slower than a normal person's —but still, it took longer than it should have considering the simple nature of the question that had instigated it. "What did you ask, again?"

She laughed and flashed a pretty, affectionate smile in our direction. "I asked what you wanted to do, Sora. We could go back to the mainland, if you wanted." The corners of her lips turned down a little; just enough to show that _she_ didn't want to. Of course, Sora was too oblivious to pick that up.

"Um… do _you_ want to?" he asked. He was frowning, too.

"Only if you do," she said quickly. She bit her lip afterward, as though she wished she could recall her words.

Ugh. The whole thing was freaking retarded.

If I'd had a body of my own, I would have laughed my head off at them. Then I would have said, "_You guys are idiots. Good luck," _shaken their hands, and left in a canoe before they drove me completely insane. But since I didn't have that option, I decided then and there to coach Sora through this. Because if I didn't, I would literally lose what was left of my mind.

_She doesn't want to, _I thought. _Look at her! See how her lips are pointing down at the corners? That's called a frown. It means that she doesn't like what's going on—in this case, all the talk of leaving. So tell her you want to stay—that you'd rather be here with her than anywhere else in the world. Because it's true, and you know it._

He was befuddled; I could feel it. Probably amazed that he'd come up with such a simple (though somewhat snide) solution on what he thought was his own.

Not that I was exactly what you would call an expert on romance. Heck, I'd only been _alive_ for a couple years; how could I be an expert on anything? But there was one thing about having been a Nobody that gave me an advantage over Sora. I was still good at weighing facts, examining evidence, and making decisions. Nobodies are logical. Things like emotions don't get in the way of solving problems, for us.

_Tell her. Go on. _

"Um…" we said slowly, "I… I'd rather stay here with you, if that's okay."

_Bravo_, I thought, though I was rather unenthused. Couldn't he do better than that?

But Kairi beamed; you'd have thought the boy had declared himself. "Oh, yeah, that's fine. I mean— I—I'd like that," she said, smiling and bashfully avoiding our gaze. "I'd like that a lot."

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A/N: Please review. I really need to know if this is even understandable before I update again. :)


	2. Chapter 2: The Cavern

Chapter 2: The Cavern

Surprisingly, the afternoon went well. We did our best teaching Kairi how to shimmy up palm trees and cut coconuts from their high, shady tops. I'd been the nagging voice in the back of Sora's mind that had told him she was going to fall and break her leg, but luckily I'd been wrong about that one.

And I'd been the voice that had helped him keep his cool as they slurped coconut milk in the shade, the voice that prompted him to tell her stories about the worlds she'd never seen and what he'd done in them. And she'd loved every minute of it—I could tell by her facial expressions. Her eyes would light up over this or that, and she giggled at the idea of Sora being a baby lion. The unseen, yet destined love of Jack and Sally had especially entranced her.

And at one point, she agreed to tell us a little bit about her time on the islands without us. It made her a little uncomfortable. Apparently it had been a lonely and somewhat brooding time in her life.

As she spoke, she drew little pictures in the sand with one fingertip. There was something artistic about the way the little squiggles and curlicues branched out around her feet, and again I was reminded of Naminé. I wondered if she spoke to Kairi in the same way that I spoke to Sora. Did she give her advice or suggest colors for clothing and nail polish?

I noticed that Sora was becoming more and more forlorn as Kairi spoke. I hadn't realized until now that he actually regretted what he'd put her though. As we watched a stray tear make its way down her face, guilt sliced across the surface of our heart like the tip of a knife.

"Things were better once school started," she was saying, brushing impatiently at her cheek. "I had something to take my mind off of you and Riku. Before that I used to just stand on the beach, thinking of you and _waiting_… It was really miserable." She sighed and finished the outline of an elaborate-looking daisy. Then she began with its speckled interior.

"Yeah. It must've been," we mused, a little remorsefully. She might have been better off if she'd simply moved on. "Maybe that's why you forgot me in the first place. You _tried_ to. It was less painful, that way."

A sudden shadow came over her eyes. She glanced up at us, then scowled and dragged a hand over on her artwork until it vanished beneath a wave of white powder. "I didn't _try _to forget you, Sora," she snapped. "And you have no idea how frustrating it was when I _did_ forget you. It wasn't like you'd never existed—it was like there was a huge portion of _me_ missing, and I could _feel_ it. I just didn't know what it was or how to explain it." She ground her teeth together in memory of her own irritation.

We looked rather sadly at the place where her creation had existed moments before. "Kairi," we said softy, and I fired encouragements at Sora as our hand searched for hers in the warm sand, "I'm… I'm really sorry." Her fingers were cold.

She sighed. "It's okay, Sora. We're together again. I'll be alright now." And finally she looked up at us, hair dancing about her face and neck.

As we sat there, she traced the back of our hand with her thumb. It was a harmless gesture, but I realized, almost immediately, that there was something off about her touch. A strange tickling sensation began to make its way down our spine and into our arm. In another split second, something was leaping back and forth between Sora and Kairi like an electric current.

I started a little at this new, strange sensation. But it seemed to have the opposite effect on Sora; he was relaxed and indifferent. And judging by the smoothness of Kairi's facial features, she wasn't feeling it either.

However, beneath the flickering shade of the palm trees, Kairi began to transform before our very eyes.

Her skin was suddenly very pearly, and her hair seemed to shoot up into her skull and fill with pigment until it was laden to the point of blackness. Her ears peeked out from beneath it, more round and child-like than they had ever been. She smiled up at us, then squeezed our fingers.

Where Kairi had been only moments ago, there was now a stranger sitting cross-legged in the sand. Her eyes seemed to drink in our appearance as though it were vital to her existence.

But who was she? I was panicking. My thoughts did laps around our brain until I was certain they must be a blur, but Sora's were as calm as a summer's day. Meanwhile, the unknown girl breathed deeply of the island air and closed her vast blue eyes. The frayed ends of her hair tickled her cheek and jawbone. She seemed completely at ease as though she'd been there all along.

But she _couldn't_ have been. We didn't even know who she was. What had happened to Kairi? And to Naminé?

_Sora,_ I thought desperately like a bouncing, pointing child trying to get their parent's attention, _Sora!_

But having never noticed that anything was off in the first place, he started violently at the sound of my "voice", then whirled around as though he were looking for a physical person who had shouted at him from somewhere in the distance. After a moment, he released Kairi's hand to scratch his head, bewildered.

"Sora? What are you looking at?" Kairi asked curiously.

I couldn't help but feel somewhat relieved as we turned around and caught another glimpse of her. She was just as sun-burnt and cherry wood-haired as before; there were no traces of the mystery girl left in her features, aside from their natural similarities.

"Are Tidus and Wakka back?" she prompted in response to our extended silence.

It took a moment for her words to register; Sora was still a little disconcerted. Apparently he'd realized that there was something off about the voice he'd just heard. But we didn't mention any this to Kairi. Instead, we shrugged and said, "Maybe. I thought I heard someone calling my name."

"Oh. It was probably one of them, then." She stood up and casually brushed the tiny pieces of sand from her skirt. "Let's go down to the beach. They must be waiting for us."

We nodded and stood up. As we followed her down the path and toward the sea, I watched her carefully, curious as to whether or not her appearance would change beneath the flickering afternoon shadows. But there was no sudden darkening of hair, no alteration in height or physique.

_Maybe I imagined it…_ I thought, a little apprehensively. It wouldn't have surprised me if that were the case. After all, I was somewhat a figment of the imagination, myself.

When we arrived on the beach, Wakka, Tidus, Riku, and Selphie had just clambered out of their canoes and onto the dock. Selphie moved sacks of groceries back and forth while Riku and Wakka struggled with heavy armloads of firewood.

Tidus was moseying along with a twelve-pack of soda in one hand and a receipt in the other. A little furrow appeared between his eyebrows as he read further and further down his list of purchases. "Twenty-five hundred munny?" he exclaimed. "For stupid hot dog buns? Sheesh, what a rip-off! I can't believe I had to buy!"

"You lost the bet, man," Wakka reminded him, dumping his armload of wood by the fire pit.

Kairi took our hand in hers and we stood up and walked toward the group. "What bet?" she asked.

Selphie dropped the groceries onto the sand and rolled her eyes. "Oh, it was just another battle in the Tidus-Riku war," she replied exasperatedly. "This time Tidus wanted to see who could throw a shoe over a couple parked cars and in through an open window across the street. Of course _he_ couldn't, but when Riku tried it, he actually made it in on the first try."

"Well, that goes without saying," Riku said haughtily, sweeping the silvery hair out of his eyes.

Tidus scowled. "Hey! I was close!"

"If you'd beenaiming for that cat in the _gutter_ you might've been," Riku said coolly. Wakka burst out laughing, and Kairi put a hand over her mouth.

_What about the shoe?_ I wondered.

"What happened to the shoe?" we asked almost immediately.

"Got it back," Tidus said happily, wiggling his toes inside the leather sandal. "Had to go knock on the door though. Guess it was some old lady's house and it landed on the table." He grimaced.

"You should have seen her face when she handed it to him," Riku said, raising one corner of his mouth in a lofty smile. "Priceless."

Kairi laughed, and Wakka gave Tidus a deep and painful-looking noogie.

The bonfire lasted several hours. Kairi's hand was warm in ours as we stared into the flames and listened to the quiet, trivial conversations around us. Selphie wanted advice on what color to paint her bedroom—and shot down every suggestion. Tidus was agonizing about school and the fact that he seemed to have forgotten anything math-related over the summer. Wakka chastised Riku for being increasingly liberal with the time he spent with girls, and less so with the time he spent with his friends.

But none of that seemed to matter to Sora at the moment. We were watching Kairi, and _he_ was marveling over her; the way the flickering light made her eyes sparkle and enhanced her concave figure: the way her lips glistened. The way she blushed whenever she met his gaze and looked at her fingers, still intertwined with ours.

But looking at her had an entirely different effect on me. It made me think of what had happened this afternoon. Maybe she was the only person who Sora saw sitting there, but _I_ was reminded of Naminé and the black-haired girl who had so inexplicably popped up out of nowhere—

"Well, let's clean up, ya?" Wakka said, finally getting to his feet. "Sora's mom is gonna send the cops out here if he's not home soon…"

We jumped. "Aw, crap," we said, "you're right. Ugh."

Suddenly Riku's eyes lit up and he turned and smirked at us. "Is it past baby boy's bedtime?" he taunted. His abrupt hostility took everyone off-guard.

We looked up in surprise. What had brought this on? "No, I don't have a bedtime," we countered.

But this immature, defensive reaction was just what Riku had been looking for. I could tell that there wasn't really any malice in his teasing, and I think Sora knew it too. But he couldn't help feeling just a little insulted. It was in his nature.

"Yes you do. Eight o'clock sharp, right?" Riku continued, unable to resist. Wakka and Kairi exchanged exasperated looks.

"No!" we insisted as our hands balled up into fists.

"Gotta snuggle up with your blankie?"

Churning fury engulfed Sora's half of our thoughts. "I don't have a blankie!" we yelped.

"Maybe you should change things up a little," Riku continued, his eyes snapping and sparking with wicked amusement. "Spend some time with your girlfriend." His eyes flickered to Kairi. "Or is she too hot for you to handle?"

Out of the corner of Sora's eye, I saw Kairi roll her eyes.

We swung a swift, misaimed punch at him. Then he was on his feet and so were we. We scuffled for a minute, laughing and yelling in turn until he finally pinned us to the ground. Selphie squealed as a wave of sand went over her head.

"Say it," Riku said, laughing and restraining our flailing arms behind our back. "Say you give."

"No," we vehemently insisted, spitting out a mouthful of sand.

As we struggled, an idea occurred to me. _See if you can get your foot on his stomach. Then you can push him off_, I suggested.

One flailing foot made contact with Riku's abs. Rock hard as they were, he still released us and stumbled backward with a startled, "Ooomph!"

"Ha!" we said triumphantly, and we leapt to our feet.

"Okay, okay, enough!" Selphie spluttered, coming between us with her arms raised and her palms out. "You got sand in my hair and all over the marshmallows! Stop, stop, _stop_!"

Wakka chuckled, and the tension dissipated. "Yeah. Take it easy, Riku."

Riku laughed too, then tossed the hair out of his eyes. And in a matter of seconds any trace of antagonism was absent from his posture and expression. In fact, he even went as far as to try and make peace. "No hard feelings, man," he said, extending a hand in our direction.

After eyeing the hand with some suspicion, we reached out and grasped it in our own. "Okay," we said, a little hesitantly. "But this means you forfeit, okay?"

"Sure, whatever," Riku said, seemingly unperturbed. "I'm heading back to the mainland now. Got some stuff to take care of."

"Aw, aren't you going to help us clean up?" Selphie pouted.

Riku shook his head. "Nope. Gotta go. Thanks for the food though, Tidus," he said, smirking.

"You're not welcome," came Tidus's tart reply.

After Riku left, we poured water over the fire pit and packed up. We worked sullenly; I could tell Sora was bothered by what Riku had said. Not so much the part about the blankie, but the part about Kairi. We were quiet as the others chatted back and forth.

_Maybe you should just be a little more confident about her_, I thought as we rolled up the bag of marshmallows. _Y'know. Just don't be such a freaking pansy._

He twisted our mouth into a grimace. _I can't help it. She's just so…_

_Yeah, yeah, _I thought impatiently; I already knew how he felt about her. _Well, why don't you kiss her?_

_I already have, _he returned, irritable.

_Yeah, like once._

_I've kissed her more than once!_

_Well, what I meant was… most the time _she_'s kissed _you_. You have to take control, man. That's what she's looking for._

We looked up at Kairi. She was picking up trash and talking to Selphie, oblivious to Sora's sudden discomfort. I could imagine how she'd like it if he took control. She'd probably be ecstatic.

But he just wasn't ready. The fact remained that while both Sora and Kairi obviously felt something very powerful between them, they were only fifteen. They were shy and somewhat insecure like most kids our age.

"I can't," we murmured, sighing and dropping our armload of pokers into the sand. "I just… what if she…?"

And finally I could see that I was destined to lose my mind. It was imminent.

_I don't know why I bother_, I thought tiredly. _You'll do what you want to do. Too bad I can't force you do anything—too bad for both of us. Because I'm the only one who makes sense in this insane asylum._

Confusion flooded his mind at the peculiar nature of this statement. Usually, I tried to avoid using the pronoun "I" too much when I was directing thoughts toward him. I tried to keep a low profile; didn't want the kid to think he was going crazy, after all. Hearing voices—voices, moreover, that have opinions of their own and show a distinct individuality—is supposed to be a sign of that, right?

And it didn't help that I'd shouted at him this afternoon, either. Now that I'd slipped up, he was sure to single my voice out from the rest of his thoughts.

"Sora?"

We looked up. Kairi was looking at us, her eyes round with concern. "Did you say something?" she asked.

We swallowed hard; Sora's mind was still reeling from his new, though still rather hazy discovery. "Um… did I?"

Kairi turned her head to the side. Now that the fire was out there was only moonlight to caress her cheek; it made her eyes sparkle. But for once, Sora didn't take notice. "Yeah…" she said. Then, after we didn't respond, "Hey, are you okay?"

_Am I…?_ Sora wondered. His thoughts had a probing edge to them now—like he was searching for me. I decided to stay quiet.

"Sora?" More loudly this time. She reached down and shook our shoulder gently.

Finally, he seemed to snap out of it. "Huh? What? Oh, sorry," we said quickly. Our eyes focused on her face and we gave our head another shake. "I was kinda daydreaming, I guess."

Suddenly Selphie giggled; we realized she must have been watching us the entire time. "Geez, Sora. Care to make a descent back into reality?" she teased.

Tidus and Kairi laughed together; Tidus with hilarity, Kairi with obvious relief.

And then it was time to go. We walked to the dock, climbed into our canoes, and paddled off into the dark, choppy waves, talking and laughing as we went. We were a little less boisterous than the rest because Sora was still dwelling on his new discovery.

_Ugh_, I thought in my own, private corner of his mind. _What have I done…?_

-:-

Sora's dreams had an odd, film-like quality to them.

A lot of them were memories—episodes of time and the feelings that accompanied them, all of which Naminé had done her best to restore. They swam on the surface of his mind like driftwood on the sea.

…We could hear waves. There was solid wood beneath our feet.

"_I didn't think you'd come, Sora. Good to see you again."_

We gasped, lips parting in surprise and trepidation. Could it really be Riku_? "Wh—where are Donald and Goofy?" _we asked.

"_Are they that important to you? More important than old friends? Instead of worrying about them, you should be asking… about her."_

"_Kairi!"_

Then there was a hand on the back of ours. It was warm. She dropped something hard and pointy into our palm.

"_Take this. It's my lucky charm, be sure to bring it back to me."_

"_I will."_

The dream faded away only to be replaced by the day's trivial sights and smells, which were being deleted from his memory—a nightly ritual that was something similar to garbage collection. And then another dream would come… another story or memory that wasn't mine…

At times like these, there was only one thing that I wanted. I wanted to be able to sleep and to have dreams of my own. True, my memories were a shallow pool compared to Sora's ocean. But maybe, just maybe, I would dream of Naminé. Maybe I would dream of the white room with the long table where we'd so casually discussed our fates. Or maybe I would dream of Hayner, Pence, and Olette. The days when we had run around Twilight Town and eaten mass quantities of ice cream seemed so far away, now.

But since I was a part of Sora's brain and not the owner of it, I had no such privileges.

Our eyelids fluttered; Sora was restless. He murmured a little, then we rolled over and sighed.

_Go ahead,_ I thought sadly. _Keep dreaming. You have no idea how lucky you really are._

"Kairi," we mumbled. We reached out, fingers aimlessly curling and uncurling. He was dreaming that we were on the beach and she was at our side. The sun was beating down on her, and it was hot—too hot. Her skin was steadily flooding with color. She was burning up.

"_Wake up_," we said loudly_. "Kairi, please wake up!"_

But she wouldn't wake. The sun was beating down on her, cruel and uncaring. The condition of her skin worsened and a sudden, illogical fear gripped us—the kind of fear that only exists in dreams.

"_Kairi please! Please wake up!"_ We tried to reach out to her, but our arms didn't seem to be functioning properly.

And quite suddenly the dream blurred away, and we were left in absolute darkness.

"_Roxas."_

The new voice startled me. If this had been my dream or my body, I would have leapt out of bed gasping for breath as though the name had been shouted rather than murmured into my subconscious ear.

"_Roxas…" Now it was more like a croon. _

We didn't recognize it at first_. "Who are you?" _we asked, slowly and carefully. Her voice echoed through our mind like the cry of a lost spirit, not really there at all, and yet somehow embedded into our brain. And then the voice took on a dream-like quality as though it were being replayed in a tape-recorder…

"_I belong with Sora. And now I am going back… to be with him," s_he said_. "See you again. I'm glad… I got to meet you."_

"_Wait—we've met before?" _I asked, and suddenly it hit me like a ton of bricks—it was a _memory_. Not some crazy dream that Sora had cooked up. In fact, Sora wasn't even responding to it at all…

Did that mean… it wasn't _his_?

In the memory we were kneeling on the ground, and there was a tiny figure, shrouded in black, in our arms. She smiled up at us, saying, _"Oh. And of course, Axel, too. You're both my best friends. Never forget," _she reached up and placed a hand on our cheek_, "that's the truth."_

And suddenly it wasn't a memory anymore. There was a flash of bright white light, and whether I had entered into reality or a new kind of dream, I wasn't sure. All I knew was that there was a delicate, feminine hand in mine—mine! Not Sora's!—and I was looking into a pair of deep, knowing blue eyes. Loose strands of ebony hair fell into them. She had a sweet smile and rather large, round ears. She was the girl I'd seen in Kairi this afternoon. Or, more accurately, the girl I'd seen in Sora and Kairi's _connection._

"_Xion_…" I whispered. For once my voice was free of Sora's.

"_Wow,_" she said softly. _"You remember me. Even though Naminé said you would forget."_

"_But I _did_ forget_," I said with new realization. Agony ripped through me. "_I forgot everything—I forgot you!" _And everything started coming back in a raging, mind-boggling torrent—everything. Xion! The black-haired girl! I'd forgotten her! I'd forgotten _Xion_!

She shook her head at the apparent sign of my distress. _"Roxas, don't—"_

_CRASH!_

My world flew into a thousand pieces as the earth-shattering noise filled our gasped and flew out of bed, heart pounding and eyes snapping open to search the darkness around us.

And then we found the source of the racket. The book that we'd been reading before bed was lying face-down on the floor. We'd left it on the foot of the bed and apparently it slid off, hit the wooden floor, and made the alarming sound that had so recently thrust us back into consciousness.

As we sighed and flopped back onto the bed, Sora's confusion finally began to settle. Either he didn't remember the last part of the dream or it hadn't meant much to him. But I was still badly shaken.

I clung desperately to her name, willing with all my might that the presence of Sora's conscious thoughts would not take it away from me. _Xion. Xion, Xion, Xion…_

And I wasn't disappointed. It seemed that now the fact of her existence had somehow resurfaced, it wasn't going away again.

But to be in her presence and to have some kind of claim on a heart all at the same time was absolute agony. The heart that was Sora's and mine was bleeding in anguish, anguish that was powerful enough to make me wish I was a Nobody again. Or a normal Nobody anyway—the kind that doesn't feel anything at all.

It was like I was reliving every moment that I'd ever spent with her. I could see us chatting on the clock tower and sharing ice cream with Axel, and I remembered all the missions we'd embarked on together. I relived her smile, her frown, and the way that her hand, always cloaked in black leather, had felt in mine. And then I relived her death.

_No_, I thought desperately, _she's not dead. She's here with me! We're in here together! She's just as alive as I am!_

…_Right?_

But nobody answered. Sora had slipped away into unconsciousness and the voice of the forgotten girl of my past had faded. And suddenly it seemed like I was not quite alone in Sora's brain. Like a haunted cavern, it was technically empty—yet at the same time, it was way too full for my liking.

I didn't belong here. Nobody did! The complexity of Sora's existence was so fantastical that it was impossible for me to wrap my head around it. How could one boy be worth the lives of so many individuals, hearts or no hearts?

I couldn't take this anymore. _Why did it have to be us? _I screamed. _Why did it have to be me?_

But the cavern did not reply.


	3. Chapter 3: The Unforgotten

Chapter 3: The Unforgotten

For the next couple days I was a listless creature that crouched in a fetal position against the back of Sora's skull. Nothing he thought or said could bring me out from my stupor. In fact, it was almost as though I _had_ gone to sleep in a way.

_Guess you got what you wanted_, I thought wryly to myself. Although the dreams weren't exactly what I had expected.

Not that they were _actual_ dreams. They were memories that flooded though my portion of Sora's mind. Once in a while I would snatch one up and examine it until I couldn't bear it anymore, then put it back, heart aching. Because they all involved Xion, and whenever I saw her face in my mind I was filled with a terribly familiar sense of emptiness and foreboding.

And it had come upon me so fast! It had come crashing down on my head like a tidal wave. Amnesiacs are lucky, if you think about it. They are led into the pool of their past in degrees, rather than being dumped in all at once and pummeled to the rocky bottom. I felt like I was pinned there, unable to move and breathe. And if someone didn't save me soon, I was going to drown.

The memories, thoughts, and emotions continued to pummel me until I was emotionally black and blue. I wondered how many times I would have to sit beside Xion on the clock tower, then watch her stand up and pull her hood back in one swift, liquid movement only to reveal the face of Sora and the intentions of Naminé in those strange, though not entirely alien features… And how many times would I then proceed to put an end to her? How many times would she die in my arms? How many tears would run down my cheek and drip steadily from my jawbone?

It made me want to rip my heart out as though it were a corrosive and dangerous tumor. I didn't want it anymore. I didn't _want_ to feel…

I began to doubt whether Xemnas had known what he'd really wanted when he'd drilled the importance of having a heart into our brains. He'd merely stressed the fact that we as Nobodies were incomplete, that we were somehow substandard. But he hadn't had the slightest idea of how agonizing emotion can really be. I was pretty sure that, had he ever actually received his heart, he would have taken it back to the store before he'd even removed the tags. Because this type of pain was worse than death. It was worse than nonexistence.

My distress was affecting Sora, too. Some indifferent part of me knew that he wasn't eating or sleeping well; that he was distant and confused. He hadn't seen the moment I'd spent with Xion, nor did I share any of my thoughts or memories with him. So he didn't know _why_ he felt the way he did. He only knew that there was something wrong with him, something wrong with his heart and his brain.

But that didn't matter, did it? I'd been worried that he'd singled me out before, but now I found that I couldn't care less. I was probably doomed to fade away until there wasn't a trace of me left for him to pick out of the crevices of his soul, anyway. And then he could just go on with his life as though nothing had ever happened. It wasn't fair, but then again, what part of my life _was_?

I'd never even been meant to exist in the first place—which in and of itself wasn't exactly a sign of a promising future. Naminé had told me that often enough, hadn't she? She'd been so matter-of-fact about it, so callous and uncaring…

_Naminé!_ The thought came to me suddenly and fiercely like a feral snarl. _Naminé did this! It's her fault! All her fault…_

And for the first time since I could ever remember, I hated her.

I couldn't believe it—for a while there, I'd actually thought that I'd loved her! I'd thought she was my friend! But it was her fault that Xion was gone…

Why had the blonde witch taken it upon herself to restore everything that Sora had lost, anyway? Wouldn't it have been better if his memories had been spread upon the wind, left for those who picked them up? After all, Humpty Dumpty had taken his fall; it wasn't our fault. And then all the king's horses and all the king's men had engaged in a frantic scramble to piece him back together again—Naminé, Xion, DiZ, Riku… and eventually me. We did everything in our power to wake a boy who wasn't even aware that he was sleeping. And Riku was the only one who'd lived to recount the entire grueling process.

Back in that white room, Naminé had told me an alluring tale—a tale about being whole. And I'd bought into that. Ugh! I felt like such a fool. She'd been so wrong—we weren't whole. How could this _ever_ be considered whole? I had no voice, no body to call my own. There was nothing left to me now-not even my sanity.

I groaned and hid my face from Sora's light; I couldn't stand it anymore. I didn't want to be a part of him. I didn't want to suffer any more. What did he care about me, anyway?

My bitterness was only fermenting over time, getting stronger with each passing day. I cared nothing of Sora or the world outside my own. All I could think about was what Naminé had done and what it meant for Xion and for me. I felt like a monster; someone who was not recognizable, who had seemingly lost the transparent blue eyes and gentle face that had once defined him.

Who was Roxas, anyway? Who was Xion? Who was Sora? They were questions that wouldn't leave me alone. Instead, they left my thoughts running in aimless circles until my anger for Naminé welled up and spilled over.

We were never meant to live. We were never meant to _be_. We were truly Nobodies in every sense of the word.

Maybe it would have been better if we'd faded back into darkness, after all.

-:-

Despite the fact that I was so lost and unsure about everything I was, time continued to pass as though nothing were wrong. Or at least I think it did; I wasn't exactly clocking it.

One night, Sora was dreaming about ice cream. I hadn't been paying attention to him as of late—I had my own thoughts and memories to mull over, after all. But this one caught my attention, mainly because it shone through the darkness like a fluorescent sign, tantalizing and irresistible.

I looked up (figuratively). A bar of ice cream hung in the blackness, upright as though it were supported by fingers that were camouflaged in the darkness. On its surface, a bead of sky-blue liquid swelled up until it fell, elongating and glistening, into the dark abyss beneath it.

_Xion,_ I thought. I wanted to reach out—surely my fingers would encounter black leather—but technically, I didn't even have fingers. I didn't have a body in this body.

As it turned out though, I didn't need one. Her voice reached out to _me_ from the blackness, soft and reassuring.

"_Roxas. Don't be sad. I came from you. I am you, the same way that I am Sora. Memories of you and me will always be together… forever, inside him."_

And with a sudden flash of light, I left Sora behind.

Xion was walking along the beach with the sea-salt ice cream in hand. She stopped and looked at me. Then she laughed, tucked a loose tuft of hair behind her ear, and took a dainty bite of the illusory, symbolic treat.

"_Roxas," _she said gently, "_Look at this!"_

I stared at her, uncomprehending. _"Erm... Look at what?"_

She laughed; the sound was pretty and warm. _"The ice cream, silly."_

"_Oh."_ We looked, but it seemed to be nothing extraordinary. The part she'd already sucked on glistened a little in the sunlight. _"Why?"_

"_You asked me who you would eat ice cream with,"_ she said, smiling. Then she reached in her coat pocket and pulled out another bar, still wrapped in its plastic. _"So I brought one for you, too."_

I walked over to her and accepted her offering, though a little hesitantly. As I unwrapped it, I couldn't help but remind her, _"Xion… this isn't real. It can't be."_

But she only nodded toward the ice cream. _"Eat up. It's already melting." _

As I moved to eat the treat, I honestly didn't have any idea what to expect. But as I placed my teeth over it and bit down gently, there was an explosion of familiar flavor in my mouth. Not quite sweet… and not quite salty, either.

But… you weren't supposed to be able to taste things in dreams, were you?

"_How is this happening?_" I asked, looking around myself in wonder. The island seemed so real.

She reached out and put a warm, tiny hand over my heart. Then she tapped on it with her index finger. I met her eyes questioningly, and she giggled.

"_Is that always the answer?"_ I asked, rolling my eyes.

To my surprise, she nodded. _"Generally… yes, it is."_

We licked our ice cream and stared out to sea. The waves rolled in and out, and gulls cried overhead. It was almost like we were really there. It felt wonderful to be in control of my own actions again, even if what was happening was only an illusion. Still…

"_I wish we weren't trapped in here," _I eventually said. Trapped in this brain. Trapped in this heart.

She turned to look at me. _"Trapped_?" she repeated, her kind, thoughtful eyes widening with surprise. _"Is that what we are?"_

I was startled. _"Well, yeah. We can't leave, can we?"_

She smiled a tiny bit. _"No, but… I like to think of it more as… being united. Being whole." _She sounded so somber, and so lovely and tremulous. She was like a teardrop in human form. And yet, her words were rough, nonsensical things.

"_Whole?" _I scoffed, and suddenly all the anger came flooding back. _"How are we whole? We don't have _bodies_! We don't have hearts!"_

"_You're right. But we do have one heart," _she said quietly. _"And now that we have come together, it is in one piece at last."_

I opened my mouth, but closed it shortly thereafter. What good did it do to argue with her? She was just like Naminé… so sure that she'd gotten it all figured out. But they were both wrong.

We looked into each other's eyes for a long time. Matching cerulean gems… windows in duplex souls. It was a miracle that we were here together… A miracle that almost certainly couldn't last.

"_When will I see you again?" _I wondered.

She shrugged. _"Who knows? It took me forever to find you."_ She sucked on the end of her ice cream bar for a moment, apparently lost in thought._ "I really don't think we were ever supposed to meet again… but maybe Naminé underestimated my persistence. Among other things."_

I smiled. _"She didn't know you as well as I did. No one did_."

Her lips curved upward, all soft and pink in the bright light, but somehow, this only added to her sobriety. _"You're probably right,"_ she said.

And suddenly I realized that the girl I'd known so well before was a mystery to me now. And so I asked her, _"Do you talk to Sora, too? Or anyone else?"_

She shook her head. _"I haven't met anyone else. And as for Sora—I don't have a personal connection with him like you do. You're his Nobody, after all."_

"_Yeah, well you're his memories," _I reminded her. Then I laughed. _"You're not missing out on much," _I assured her. _"He's kind of a dork."_

She laughed aloud, then tucked her hair behind her ear again. _"Roxas—he's you. I know you get tired of hearing it, but you two have a lot more in common than you think. Just like Kairi and Naminé do."_

I looked at her, curious. "Xion, _how do you know about… them?" _I asked.

"_I can hear Sora's thoughts, occasionally. And sometimes yours." _Was it just me, or did I detect a hint of sadness in her voice? If she knew my thoughts, then she knew about Naminé and how I felt about her. Or, at least, how I _had_ felt about her.

"_Xion," _I said, agonized. "_I didn't know—I mean, I—"_

"_Shh," _she said, putting a tiny finger to my lips. _"Naminé is meant for you. Just like Kairi is meant for Sora."_

Why was my throat suddenly so tight? I grabbed Xion's hands and pressed them tightly in my own. _"No!" _The idea was absolutely appalling to me now. How could I possibly forgive Naminé after all she'd done?

"_Yes," _she said simply. _"Anyone could see it."_

"_You're wrong,"_ I said. "_I was wrong, too. I mean… she's the reason I forgot you in the first place!"_

"_No," _she said firmly. "_I made a choice. Don't try to blame her. She's the reason we can be together again, after all." _She smiled, and it was the saddest thing I'd ever seen. _"She was always very nice, and she left it all up to me."_

"_I don't know why you did it,"_ I said mournfully. I looked away from her; why did she have to be so self-sacrificing? _"Why did you go back to Sora, Xion?" _I asked her.

She squeezed my fingers. _"Well, why did _you_ do it?"_

I opened my mouth, then closed it again. That was an excellent question. Why had I chosen to go back to Sora, anyway?

"_Because I was herded back to him?" _I suggested, hesitant. I could still remember the way Riku had kidnapped me, and how DiZ had guided me through his little Twilight Town creation… and how Axel had tried to save me from my fate…

Xion shook her head, black hair whipping against her face. _"No. Don't blame it on them. You were pulled back by a desire to be whole. And a desire to do what you knew was right."_

"_I don't know what's right anymore," _I whispered. _"I don't know where I belong."_

Her eyes met mine, and liquid sorrow pooled beneath her eyelashes. But there was something resolute about them just the same. She reached up and stroked my cheek with her thumb. _"There was a time when I felt the same way you do now. And Riku told me something that helped me figure things out."_

I looked up in surprise. _"Really? What?"_

She looked oddly faraway, now. _"He told me that the answer I found as to where I belonged had to be right for everyone… not just me. Because everything I had—everything I was—belonged to Sora. And giving that back was best for everyone—you, me, Naminé—because now all of us get to live on, in a way." _She sighed. _"You belong here, Roxas. With Sora. It's who you are."_

I couldn't speak. So I just stood there and shook my head, eyes shut tight. She was right, of course, I knew that now. And part of me wondered if I'd known it all along. _"Don't leave me again," _I finally choked out. It was all I could ask for, now.

She put her fingers beneath my chin and tilted my head up so she could look into my eyes. _"I won't. You may not be able to see me, but I'll always be here—forever. How could I leave you now?_ _You're my best friend."_

I felt like I owed her more than that friendship. Somehow, even from the beginning, it had always seemed like there was something more. But she was right about one thing, if not many—there was something about Naminé that just _pulled_. Something that had made me jittery and nervous, something that had made my portion of Sora's heart beat just a little faster. It wasn't something that I could just ignore. Especially when I saw her every day in the movements, expressions, and mannerisms of my other half's true love.

Xion was right. She was right, and it was killing me. The heart that Sora and I shared was full to the bursting point; surely Sora would wake up with unexplained tears running down his face.

"_I felt something for you," _I whispered. _"No matter what they said. I always did."_

She smiled, but only managed to look more somber. Her lips turned upward at the corners, and her eyes snapped back and forth from my face to the popsicle stick in her hands. _"'Did' being the keyword," _she said softly.

And then her arms were around me, and there was a certain finality in the way her tears and mine mingled together and coursed down our cheeks.

-:-

The dream ended, and I was alone in my little corner of Sora's head once more. But this time, I was left with wonder rather than hatred or bitterness. I marveled over the way Xion had managed not only to contact me, but also to walk along the beach and share ice cream with me. How had she done it?

It reminded me of the way Naminé had once hi-jacked the data necessary to pay me a visit, back when I'd so desperately needed consolation—back when all I wanted was to understand, and to feel like somebody cared.

Xion was right. Naminé wasn't a witch—she was just able to see the bigger picture. I still harbored some resentment toward her because of that, but I didn't hate her. Not anymore.

She swam across the surface of my memories, laughing and tossing her silvery-blonde hair over her shoulders. She couldn't remember Xion, and she didn't realize how much pain she'd put me though. But that wasn't really her fault, was it?

As I sat with my face turned toward the darkness, a tiny shaft of light came to rest on my shoulder.

-:-

The cavern had a hole in its ceiling now.

It wasn't a very large one. In fact, it reminded me of the holes in the snow I'd seen in Christmas Town, when I was on a mission there with Xion once. An elf had just passed by and dumped a handful of what looked like salt all over it—and naturally, we were curious enough that we had to go and take a look. I could still remember kneeling down on the ice with her and the way the cold had bitten my knees through the heavy leather of my pants and coat.

Each piece of salt had burned its way into the snow, forming little nooks. And the walls of each nook were made of delicate ice which sloped upward and nearly met in the middle. The closer these walls got to the middle, the thinner they were, until there was nothing left—only a patch or hole where the salt had burned its way through. And it was just big enough to let a tiny bit of light in.

A tiny bit. That's what came through the hole in the ceiling, now. It was enough to make the cavern of Sora's brain seem less like a pit of despair and more like a home. Because the light was like hope; it touched my cheek and tickled at my eyelids, practically begging for my attention. Still, I could only crouch in my corner and turn my face away from it, because sometimes the truth hurts less when you just pretend like you don't know it's there.

But one day something happened, and those delicate little walls surrounding the hole were torn down. Maybe they'd never had a chance of standing—not in the face of the blinding light they were about to be exposed to, anyway.

We (Sora and I) were sitting on the beach, with Kairi's hand in ours. I was only vaguely aware of what was going on. But when Naminé's voice echoed through our mind, I found myself sitting in a patch of strong, white light, and it was almost enough to blind me. The truth was staring me right in the face, and I couldn't ignore it any longer.

_Roxas_… she thought, slowly and carefully. _Come back._

Whoa. Talk about unexpected. How was it that this girl always knew when I was in a state of inner turmoil? _…W-what did you say?_ I thought back, a little disbelievingly.

_Come back. From wherever you are. Please._

Come back? So she had realized how distant I was? Maybe she had noticed my absence in Sora's eyes when Kairi looked into them. Maybe she had guessed that I'd sunk into a deep depression. But why did she have to care so much? It made it so hard to hold any sort of grudge against her, even though Xion had said that I shouldn't.

_I've missed you while you were gone,_ she thought tenderly. There was nothing accusing about it. She was just letting me know that she cared.

_I missed you too,_ I thought, and it struck me how true that really was. In that moment, all the accusations and hurt flew out the window until I was left with nothing—nothing but my simple, innate love for her. I sat in the light, exposed and unblinking. Forgiveness is such a simple process when you're dealing with a force as powerful as destiny…

_Please… I need you,_she thought longingly. _I need you by my side._

Technically, I would always be by her side—or as long as Sora and Kairi were together, anyway. But Naminé knew what it was like to have me really _there—_to have my thoughts intertwined with Sora's and my heart so close to hers. It didn't seem fair, really, for me to remain distant and aloof from her. Not when she meant so much to me.

_Alright,_ I thought, and the feeling of relief that washed over me was like liquid bliss. _I'll come back, Naminé. For you._

And for the first time in a long time, I was aware of Sora. How the sun felt on _our _skin, and how the salty air tasted on _our_ tongue. As I gained awareness, I felt a twinge of recognition in his thoughts that was almost like a greeting.

It was almost like something had snapped back into place. The listlessness in Sora's mind (which I hadn't entirely noticed until now) was suddenly gone, and both of us were at home.

_Hey,_ I thought, slowly and carefully.

_Hey,_ he replied after a long moment, and a sense of keenness replaced the previous haze. We gave our head a clearing shake.

And then we straightened up and gave Kairi's hand a gentle squeeze. As she turned and looked into our eyes, her own seemed to soften as though she could finally see daylight though the tunnels that led to our souls.

"Sora," she crooned.

_Roxas._ I could feel Naminé in the tightening of Kairi's hand around ours.

We were home.

* * *

A/N: I'd like to extend a quick thanks to my beta reader, In a Quandary, whose work is both excellent and very professional. And to everyone else: sorry it's taken me so long to update; I've been having some problems with my laptop. But anyway, I hope you enjoyed the new chapter! I will try to get the next one posted soon. Please **review** if you've got a moment. :)


	4. Chapter 4: Splendor

Chapter 4: Splendor

For the first time in a long time, time began to mean something to me again.

And for the first time in a long time, I was fully aware of what Sora and I were doing. It was a sunny Saturday afternoon, and we were sitting against a palm tree, enjoying the cool shade that was resting on our face as we rummaged through our lunch.

_Hmm… a sandwich… a carrot… and… a CUPCAKE! Aw, I love you, Mom!_

Sora was very nearly back to his old self again. Only now that I was coming out of my own stupor did I realize just how painful my withdrawal had been for him. It was like a deep, unexplained depression that had gripped his soul. It was so unlike Sora that everyone who knew him had begun to worry. Especially Kairi.

But thankfully, it had passed.

_You're supposed to eat the other stuff first_, I chided, rather fondly.

Sora made us hesitate with our mouth open; the cupcake was directly in the line of fire. We sighed, and we eyed the sugary morsel over almost mournfully. _Awww… it won't hurt anything, will it?_ he thought.

_Only the lining of your stomach,_ I replied.

Sora pondered this for a moment. Then we laughed and took a gargantuan bite out of it. _I can live with that_, he thought gleefully.

_Sure you can_, I thought sarcastically, but I enjoyed the cupcake's taste and smell almost as much as he did. Maybe it was just because his thoughts were so entertaining when he was digesting sugar.

"Hey, Sora," a very familiar voice said. We turned around as the usual fleet of butterflies assaulted our stomach.

"Hey Kairi," we returned, and I was vaguely pleased that Sora had done something to make our voice sound casual.

She linked her hands together behind her back and bent over, smiling. I noticed that her sunburn had faded away completely, leaving her usual milky skin in its wake. And there were those same ocean-blue eyes boring into ours-how dearly familiar they were! "Whatcha doing, lazy bum?" she asked, a little smile playing around the corners of her lips.

"Eating lunch," we answered, ignoring the jibe. "My mom packed it for me when I told her about how we kept trying to spear fish for lunch out here. Want some?"

She contemplated this for a moment. "Well… do you have anything sweet?"

We grinned, and Sora let a short laugh escape our mouth. "Um… I did a minute ago," we said, dangling the cupcake wrapper between our fingers. "You're a little late, though."

"Aw… you didn't even leave me a bite?" she asked, feigning petulance.

"Nope."

She laughed and stuck her tongue out at us. "Fine. Guess I won't tell you my idea."

"What idea?" we asked, almost immediately. Sora was a sucker for any bait she laid out.

"Nuh-uh. Not telling," she teased, peeking at us from beneath her eyelashes. Then she turned around, hands still linked behind her back, and began to flounce away in the same direction she'd come from.

"Hey!" we said, laughing. "Wait up!" We jumped to our feet, ignoring what was left of the lunch, and took off after her. She giggled and started running when she heard our footsteps coming after her.

We laughed and chased her down the beach. For a girl, she was pretty fast and surprisingly agile, leaping over random piles of driftwood with ease. Finally we reached the north end of the island, and there was nowhere left for her to run. We splashed through the shallow water beneath the dock, then reached out and snagged her by the waist before she could get around us.

She was so warm and small beneath our hands, looking up at us with wide, sparkling blue eyes and giggling nonsensically. We scooped her up bridal-style, one arm beneath her knees and one at her back. Her body was practically weightless, hanging in our arms like a pearly crescent moon.

And then we stopped laughing, and Kairi did too. The smiles slowly melted off our faces, and we looked into her eyes and she looked into ours.

For the briefest moment, I could see a kind of familiar stirring in them—and nervous excitement rushed through me. Maybe this was as close to Naminé as I would ever be, but in a way, maybe it was all I ever needed.

I waited for Sora to get chickenhearted and maybe force us to blush and set her on her feet. But he didn't. We just held her: held her for what felt like an eternity.

And then we were leaning toward her, our eyelashes pulling over our eyes like curtains. Our heartbeat increased, and we heard the whisper of her lips as they parted in anticipation, then caught the sharp, nectarine aroma of her lip gloss. We leaned toward her, searching…

"Sora! Kairi!"

We nearly died of a heart-attack right then and there. Kairi's hand flew to her chest, and her eyes were wide and fearful.

"There you are," Tidus said, coming around the corner. When he saw us standing there with Kairi in our arms, he laughed.

Suddenly Selphie appeared behind him. "Leave them alone, Tidus," she was saying. "We can play ball another—" she stopped short, and huge green eyes grew wide as they roved over us. Her hand flew to her mouth, and she stifled a giggle. "Whoops!" she said pointedly, then grabbed Tidus by his arm and began towing him back toward the beach. "Sorry guys!"

After they were gone, we looked down at Kairi and gave a short, awkward chuckle. "Erm…"

"Those _two_," Kairi said exasperatedly, wriggling in a way that expressed her desire to be set down. We set her on her feet, and she sighed.

We couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. By the look on Kairi's face, she was, too.

Then Sora suddenly remembered the reason we'd chased her down in the first place. "Um, Kairi?" we asked. "What was that idea you had? You know, that you were talking about earlier?"

"Hmm?" Kairi asked. Then her face brightened. "Oh. I was just going to ask you—well, you know how there's that firework show on the mainland tonight?"

"Yeah," we answered. Selphie, Tidus, and Wakka were planning to attend, and they'd invited us along, too. It was one of the biggest Destiny Islands celebrations of the year.

"Well," Kairi began, and she reached over and grabbed our hand in her own, only to gaze down at our fingernails rather than our face. "I was wondering… do you really even want to go? To the show and the parade and all that?"

We were surprised. "Um, I dunno. Why?"

"Well, I bet we'd get a pretty nice view of the fireworks from the tree house," she said slowly, still refusing to look us in the eye. "That's if you wanted to stay here for the show instead."

"Like… all of us?"

"No," she said, her face coloring just a little bit. "Like… just me and you."

"Oh." Sora was slightly stunned. And then an excited, jittery feeling washed over us—a feeling that was both pleasure and agony at the same time.

_Well, say yes! _I thought sharply. He had no idea how lucky he was that he _could_ say yes; that he_ could_ tell this girl how we felt about her—this girl who was more than one girl.

"Oh—" we said, "Yeah! I mean—that'd be awesome!"

She looked up quickly, and a smile spread across her face. "Really?"

"Sure," we said, and then a strange surge of confidence swept through Sora. "I mean—" we squared our shoulders. "I'd go anywhere—do anything—as long as I could be with you."

She looked at us for a long moment. And then her eyes turned all shiny, and she was giving us the most heart-melting smile in the world. Because it was so obvious that Sora had meant what we'd said—and even more importantly, said it. At last.

"Sora…"

The way she breathed the word sent shivers down our spine. We scooped her up in a soft, sweet-smelling embrace, and she melted to our chest like butter. I felt a swooping sensation in our stomach—and it had come from me. Because when Kairi was in our arms like this and I couldn't see her face, it was easy for me to imagine that she was Naminé. And in a way, she was.

_Kudos, Sora_, I thought happily. _What did I tell you?_

He was a little startled at the nature of the thought. Then he almost laughed. _Yeah, I know_, he thought. _You were right… whoever you are._

"Let's go hang out with them for a while," Kairi finally said, leaning out of our embrace. "You know, the others. Just so they won't be mad when we don't go with them tonight."

We made a face. "Do we have to?"

She laughed, then pulled us close again. "We'll have together-time later…"

Butterflies._ Tell her we don't feel like waiting,_ I thought playfully.

'_We'?_

_Uh…_ I hastily backpedalled,_ I mean... you…_

_Uh huh… _he replied, almost knowingly.

"Sora?" Kairi asked, laughing lightly. "Are you still with me?"

"What? Uh, sorry," we said, and a dorky, lopsided grin stole its way across our face. "Just thinking."

She smiled even wider, flashing a perfect set of snow-white teeth at us. Then her arms tightened around our waist and she rested her head on our chest. Her hair smelled sweet.

Or, more accurately, _their_ hair smelled sweet. Because in that moment, I could have sworn that it was blonde.

-:-

Even though Sora and I weren't crazy about the idea, we spent the afternoon playing soccer. Tidus and Wakka were absolutely enthralled because we now a decent amount of players. For the first time in weeks Selphie and Kairi both agreed to play, and even Riku had decided to grace us with his presence.

The field was a wide stretch of beach, and one goal was a couple palm trees while the other was a boulder and a pile of driftwood. The thick sand was sometimes hard to play in, but it was a good cushion in case things got rough.

It was a long and grueling game since Riku and Wakka were the goalies and they were exceptionally good at it. After the team containing Riku, Selphie, and Tidus was victorious, the rest of us collapsed in the sand, gasping for breath and dripping with sweat. Wakka kicked the soccer ball into the bushes in frustration. "Rgghhh…. Sora, you suck at this, ya?"

We couldn't help but be somewhat insulted. "What! No I don't!"

"Then why didn't we win? Huh?" Wakka demanded, bending over and rubbing the back of his head where the soccer ball had nailed him.

"Because Sora's what we like to call a space-case," Riku said laughingly, his eyes flashing down at us from their lofty frames. He tossed his head, flipping his long, silvery bangs from his eyes.

Sora wanted to retort, but I took the opportunity to interrupt, _Chill, Sora. He's just trying to work you up._ At which he promptly closed our mouth. His obedience was unusual, I'll give you that, but I wasn't going to complain.

Kairi caught Riku's eye, then shook her head as though to discourage him.

"No, it's okay," we said, taking Riku by surprise. "There's probably some truth to that."

Riku frowned as though he'd been denied something that was vital to his existence. Then he whirled around and caught Tidus in a headlock. "So what was with that sad attempt at a header, Tidus?" he taunted, grinding a fist into the latter's head. "Kinda looked like you were doing the funky chicken to me."

"What? No it didn't!" He pushed at Riku's restraining arms and tried to wriggle free, but had little success. "C'mon, Riku, lemme go!"

Kairi caught our eye and stifled a giggle. Thankfully, it looked like Riku had found a new victim.

When it was time to go, Kairi decided that we would leave with the rest of the guys, and then come back later. She wanted a chance to shower before our date.

_Our_ date. I wondered how Naminé felt about that. Was it possible that she was as nervous as I was? I was almost sure of it. Then again, she'd always seemed so calm and serene…

And so we paddled back with the others in our canoes. Even though the sea was a little choppy, it took only a few minutes, and when we arrived back at the mainland we were almost crowded out by a throng of excited people, trying to get front row seats to the show on the beach.

Maybe Kairi was right—it would be nice to be able to enjoy this in the comfort and privacy of our own island, even if it meant that we had to be further away.

We walked Kairi along the dock, then up the cobblestone path until we arrived at her house. The village was quiet this time of day, and the only movement was that of palm fronds rustling in the wind and smoke curling out of a few stray chimneys.

We stood on the doorstep with her for a moment, not talking, not worrying about anything at all, but not really needing to, either.

She looked up at us, smiling serenely in the afternoon sun. She was just so—perfect. So we wrapped our arms around her and cradled her to our chest. She sighed and clutched us to her as though we were the air wafting through the palm trees and the sun on her cheek: as though we were the embodiment of everything that made up who she was—her dreams, her love, her life. It was one of those moments when she was the most beautiful girl in the world as far as Sora was concerned. And it was the moment that I really understood how beautiful Naminé was to me, too.

"I don't want you to go…" she breathed. Her arms tightened around us.

We buried our face in her hair. "I'll be back to pick you up in an hour," we said.

"That's not what I meant," she murmured. "I meant that… I don't want you to leave me… ever again." As she said it, I felt Naminé's subconscious agreement.

_Tell her we won't_, I thought to Sora, forgetting all about my determination to keep myself out of our conversations from now on. _Tell her we'll stay with her forever._

He didn't seem surprised or mystified by my presence. But his answer wasn't exactly what I'd wanted to hear.

_We won't be able to stay with her forever,_ he thought back. _Who knows what the future will bring? I'm the keyblade master. And you are a part of me, apparently. So you have to come, too._

He was right of course. But how were we supposed to tell Kairi and Naminé that?

"I'll stay as long as I possibly can," we answered slowly, carefully.

Suddenly, she stiffened and leaned away from us. We caught her gaze, and her eyes were full of sharp, ragged pain that contradicted their round and placid shape. As they began to pool with tears, she buried her face in the fabric of our shirt.

How unfair it was. But we didn't speak of it again. It hurt too much.

Instead, we ran our hands up and down her back until she had composed herself. When we saw her face again, she was smiling as though she had decided to lock the idea away in a chest and throw away the key. "I'll see you in an hour," she said casually, pulling away and moving toward the door.

"Kairi?" We called out suddenly, just as she was reaching for the knob.

"Yes?" she replied, turning slowly. The wind rushed through the trees, and sheaves of dark red hair danced around her face.

"I love you, you know." The words were spoken quickly, before Sora had a chance to second-guess himself. Because it was about time that she heard it.

She studied us for a long moment, and we could tell by twitching of her mouth that she was on the verge of tears again. But then she took a deep breath. Her shoulders rose and fell, and her lips curved upwards in a new smile—a genuine one. A smile that told of inner acceptance. "I love you, too," she said softly. "And I guess that's all I need for now."

-:-

On the way home, we wondered if we should rethink what we were doing. After all, would a relationship with Naminé and Kairi really be beneficial at this point? We weren't exactly an average bunch of teenagers without a care in the world, after all. What if we couldn't promise them the future that they deserved? What if we couldn't promise them _anything_?

And yet… Sora had always been the type that followed his heart without question. And something about that just seemed right. Kairi was right for him. Naminé was right for me.

_Hard to imagine life without her, isn't it?_ I thought toward Sora. _Something about her just… fits._

_Yeah…_ Sora agreed. Then an interesting thought occurred to him, and he directed it toward me. _So… do you see Naminé whenever you see Kairi, Roxas?_

I was more than a little taken aback. How long had he known I was there? How did he recognize me for who I was? Sora had never been much of a detective. It looked like he was turning over several new leaves, today.

_Not always…_ I answered carefully. _But sometimes when you touch Kairi, I can hear Naminé's thoughts._

Sora didn't seem shocked or disturbed like I thought he would. He was merely thoughtful. _Oh. Sorry that you can't be with her… you know, the way that I'm with Kairi. That must be hard._

Intuitive! Sora was being intuitive! I could hardly believe it. _Well… it's okay. It was hard before, but now I know where I belong. And in a way… I really am with her... whenever you're with Kairi._

_That's kind of how I figured out that you were there in the first place,_ he thought. _Whenever… 'we'… were around Kairi, you'd sort of come alive. I could feel you. And I knew that it must be you, since you were my Nobody, and Naminé was Kairi's…_

_Right._

Finally, we arrived at home. After being greeted by Sora's mom and explaining the situation to her, we dashed upstairs to get ready.

_And don't overdo it with the cologne this time_, I reminded him.

_Thanks for the tip, me._

_You're welcome, I._

-:-

As the sun set, things cooled off a little more than usual. But for once the usual ocean breeze was absent from the air, and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. It was perfect weather for a firework show.

People gave us strange looks as we helped Kairi into a canoe, untied it from the dock, and set out across the smooth, black water. But we hardly noticed them, really. Sitting next to Kairi was better than sitting in front-row seats any day, no matter where we were.

As we paddled out toward the island, it struck Sora how precious this tiny girl beside us really was. How her eyes sparkled like moonlit pools, and her hair tickled at her pearly-white shoulders.

_I'll never find anyone like her in all the worlds for as long as I live,_ Sora thought. And coming from someone who lived inside his brain, trust me when I say that he believed it.

_Well I have, _I thought, a little teasingly.

That took him by surprise. _Hey—Naminé doesn't count._

_Why not?_

_Because they're the same girl, remember_?

…_Hmm… Yeah. In a way._

We paddled up to the dock and tied the canoe securely in place. Then we turned around, scooped Kairi up and set her down on the ledge. A gentle smile played around the corners of her lips, and her eyes sparkled down at us as we grabbed onto the dock and then swung ourselves up to sit beside her.

She scooted closer to us, then sighed and rested her head on our shoulder. "We could just stay here," she said contentedly.

"Don't you want a better view?" we asked.

"I honestly couldn't care less about fireworks right now," she admitted with a short laugh.

We laughed too, then wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "Same here. But I know there's a stack of blankets in the tree house, in case we get cold."

She thought about that for a minute, then said, "Okay."

So we helped her up, then took her hand in ours and proceeded across the beach. Even though the sun had set a long time ago, it was easy to see where we were going. The moon was rising over the horizon as though it had sprung out of the ocean, and it was full and round and bright against the sky.

There was no sound except the sharp _clunk clunk, clunk clunk _of our shoed footsteps as we made our way along the walkway to the tree house. We climbed the ladder and went inside.

Sure enough, the usual stack of blankets and board games were sitting against the wall. We grabbed a large, fuzzy blue quilt and spread it out on the floor right beneath the entryway. Since the blanket was so large, we rolled it up several times and spread it across the place where Kairi would be lying. It would help dull the hardness of the wooden floor beneath her delicate frame.

As we worked, Kairi's eyes never left us. She opened her mouth once or twice only to close it again and continue watching our preparations with nothing short of worshipful adoration in her eyes.

And when we sat down and motioned for her to do the same, she didn't hesitate to curl up at our side and rest her head on our shoulder. Almost automatically, we wound an arm around her. In that moment, there was nothing else in the world but her.

"Thank you, Sora," she sighed.

We pressed our face into the soft, sweet-smelling surface that was her hair. Then her words sunk in, and we couldn't help but ask, "What for?"

"For this," she said softly. Suddenly there was a distant, muffled crash. We looked out at the large, black sky stretching above us and were almost surprised to see streaks of red light blooming from a single, bright point on the horizon. The firework show had begun.

She pulled away, then rested her head on her hand and looked into our eyes. Another firework filled the sky with golden light, illuminating her face and making it, if possible, even more unearthly in its beauty.

"You don't need to thank me for this," we assured her. "You deserve everything… everything, and more than I could ever give you in my entire lifetime."

She gave us a round-eyed, adoring smile because she could obviously tell that Sora'd meant what we'd said. After all, Sora had never been very eloquent – he was always blatantly and unwaveringly honest, no matter what the circumstances. Calling him "smooth" would be amusingly inaccurate. There was nothing smooth about him at all—nothing contrived, nothing suave. He was simply honest.

And his love for her was nothing short of that. Honest. Simple. Clean. Kind of like the way I felt about Naminé.

Another firework exploded, flooding the sky and her skin with iridescent light.

_Naminé_, I thought softly, probingly. She felt so close, now… close to the surface…

Suddenly, Kairi's fingers were beneath our chin, warm and soft. Her face was only inches from ours, and we could smell the unique aroma that came from her chest and neck.

We took her face in our hands, caressing her warm, soft cheeks with our thumbs. The shadows over her eyes deepened until we could see nothing but her pale, delicate eyelids. She leaned in closer, searching, and her breath caught and her lips parted.

And we guided them to our own.

They were soft and sweet—the same as always, coated with a layer of luscious strawberry lip gloss. But something about this kiss was even better than all the rest. Or at least for me, it was.

I could actually feel Naminé this time. I could feel her in Kairi's fingers at the nape our neck, twisting our hair between them; I could feel her in Kairi's lips, pulling and tasting and loving us with a light yet desperate fervor. And I could hear her voice in the sigh that rushed from Kairi's lungs and filled our senses with the essence of strawberry.

_Naminé_…

Her lips kneaded ours, and she wrapped her arms even more tightly around our neck, pulling our body to hers. Her hands continued to pull at our hair, twisting it around her fingers. She trembled a little as we released her face, then wrapped our arms around her waist and pulled her even closer.

I wanted her to feel me, too. And so I willed myself into Sora's hands—really tried to put myself into their movements. I willed myself into the fingers that traced her spine and came to rest on her pearly shoulders. I willed myself into the lips that danced with hers. And as I did so, I knew that she would be able to feel the warmth and subtlety that was _me_. I knew she would recognize me, just as I had recognized her. The idea filled me with pure bliss—and I was sure that my portion of Sora's heart must have been simply overflowing with it.

And now it was as though there was no Kairi and Sora at all. There was only me and Naminé, and my hands were in her long blonde hair and hers were running up and down my chest. It was as though I had complete control of my very own body. And so I knotted my fingers in her hair, holding her face to mine and breathing when she breathed. Our lips moved in perfect synchrony. Her eyelashes fluttered and tickled at my cheek, and it was all so delicious that we simply couldn't stop.

A loud, sudden gasp brought me to my senses. Instinctively, I released Naminé and turned around to see where it had come from.

I was more than slightly confused at what I saw. Sora was looking at me, eyes wide and mouth agape. He looked nothing short of stunned, sitting back on his heels with his hands in the air.

Wait a minute—_Sora_?


	5. Chapter 5: Existence

A/N: Well, here it is. Finally. Sorry about the wait. My other story is kinda taking priority right now.

Please enjoy and **review**!

* * *

Chapter 5: Existence

The only time that I ever saw Sora, as a general rule, was when we were looking in a mirror. Which definitely wasn't the case right now, because I didn't feel _any_ of the emotions that were written across the face before me.

My eyes never left his and his never left mine, but when I moved my arm, his remained stationary. Which meant that he definitely wasn't a reflection…

I lifted my hands and looked at them in blatant disbelief. They were eerie and somewhat transparent in the space before my eyes, but they were still… _mine_. When I willed my fingers to flex and bend, they did my bidding.

This had happened only once before. I'd been able to leave Sora for the briefest moment so that I could have a minute conversation with Naminé…

Naminé! I whirled around.

She was kneeling before me with a gentle smile on her face. Not far behind her, Kairi was sitting back on her heels just like Sora.

Kairi didn't seem surprised. In fact, there was a gentle smile on her face as her eyes flickered over Naminé and me. It was as though she'd been expecting something like this to happen for some time now.

But how _had_ it happened? From what I could see, it looked like Sora and Kairi had broken their kiss and pulled apart, but Naminé and I _hadn't_. And so we'd simply been left behind, still clinging to one another. We were like a pair of ghosts kneeling between them.

For the longest moment, the four of us looked back and forth, from one face to the next. As my roving eyes finally fell on Sora, I found his expression somewhat amusing. He looked like he'd been clubbed over the head. I could picture the befuddlement that would be gluing the cogs of his brain together right now.

But he knew me. There was no reason for him to be so surprised.

"Hey," I said in my own clear, carrying voice. I laughed at the series of emotions that played across his face—shock, confusion, and finally recognition.

"Hey," he returned, hesitant and still somewhat disbelieving.

I turned back to Naminé. The girl was smiling up at me, not only as though she'd been waiting to see me for a long time, but as though she'd been _expecting_ it. "Roxas," she said simply. The way she said my name had always made me feel a little giddy, but it was even better than I remembered it.

I took her hands in mine. They were warm and soft, in spite of the fact that I had a pretty good view of the floor through them. And the sensations flooding through me were just as strong as they had been before. It was as though we really had bodies of our own.

Without another thought, I sprang easily to my feet, pulling her along with me. Her eyes never left mine.

She was just as beautiful as ever with her long coils of hair twisting and fraying around her neck and shoulders. She was dressed in white and looked slightly luminous in the moonlight, only adding to my previous suspicions that she might be an angel or some other type of heavenly being.

We looked down at Kairi, and then Sora. Kairi was smiling serenely with her hands in her lap, and Sora's confusion seemed to have subsided into something along the lines of quiet surprise.

There were another series of explosions, and the tree house was filled with green and gold light. Naminé looked up at me and said, "I think we might have a few minutes of our own. You know. Before we have to go back." She gestured toward Sora and Kairi.

I gaped at her. "Really? Like, we can go somewhere… without them?"

"Yes. For a while, at least," she said, smiling lightly.

"Okay. Um…" I turned back to Sora. "See you in a bit?" I laughed at how casual it sounded.

Sora didn't answer, but Kairi beamed at us and said, "Okay. Have a nice time."

Naminé smiled back at her and even graced her with a small giggle; you'd have thought they were best friends. "We will."

There was a long pause. And I could tell that they we were all wondering the same thing. How long could the four of us be separated? And what effect would it have on them? And us?

Finally, I broke the silence. "Well… have a nice date, you two."

That seemed to wake Sora up. He looked up at me, then exchanged glances with Kairi. Without any hesitation, he reached out and took her hand in his. "We will," he said softly, without dropping her gaze. Her answering smile was exultant.

And then it was time to leave them alone. Finally.

Naminé and I walked out into the night, hand in hand. We climbed down the ladder together and walked across the moonlit beach in a comfortable sort of silence. We were still getting used to the feeling of being in control—of having our very own bodies again, or something similar to them anyway.

It was a pretty awesome feeling. I resisted the urge to go running, whooping, and hollering down the beach, although I'm pretty sure she would have come along with me if I'd asked her to.

"Naminé?"

She looked up at me as another explosion illuminated her skin. "Yes?" she asked, just as serene as always. I could tell by the subtly wry expression on her face that she wasn't surprised by the fact that I was asking her yet _another_ question. It had been my role from the very beginning.

But I knew she didn't mind it. "How is this happening?" I asked.

I was sure that she'd know the answer, so I was a little taken aback when she said, "Who knows? I don't think there have ever been Nobodies quite like us before."

Huh. I shook my head. "Probably not. Do you think…" I swallowed hard. "Do you think it will ever happen again?" I gestured at our luminous, transparent bodies.

She lifted one tiny shoulder, then let it fall. "Who knows?" she said again. "We'll have to be sure to make tonight last, in case it doesn't."

I lifted her fingers to my lips and kissed them. She watched me with large, soft eyes and a gentle smile on her lips.

"Naminé?" It came more tentatively this time.

"Hmm?"

"Do you think…" I took a deep breath, because the idea I was about to present had only just occurred to me, and it was a painful one. "Do you think that the only reason we feel this way is because of Sora and Kairi? Because we've lived inside them, and we feel how they feel?"

She didn't flinch. Could nothing faze this girl?

"Well…" she began, releasing my hands and taking short, deliberate steps toward the ocean. "It's possible, I suppose."

Another firework crashed and flared on the horizon; its iridescence was mirrored in her eyes. The lashes pulled over them, and she stood quietly for a moment, breathing in the smell of the sea and thinking.

Her words should have made me feel like my heart had been torn in two. But I found that the only thing I could dwell on right now was how stunning and unreal she looked, standing there with wisps of pale, soft hair curling around her neck. If I didn't really love her, then what did that mean?

Suddenly she spoke. "After the first time I met you, I couldn't leave you alone. DiZ didn't want me to contact you at all. He said it was best that you didn't know the truth." She turned and looked at me again; her hands fell to her sides. "But I found that I wanted you to know. I cared a little more than I should have."

I was startled to see that her eyes were glistening; I moved toward her, arms extended, but she shook her head and stepped away from me, palms raised.

As I looked at her, I could feel the hurt register on my face.

"I wanted you to know who you were," she went on, looking away. "It didn't seem fair that anyone, heart or no heart, should have to go through what you've been through. And then on top of that, there was something about you that just…" she brushed at the tears that stood on her cheeks, sparkling with each flash of light in the sky.

"Pulled?" I suggested hopefully.

She smiled through her tears. "Yeah," she said, wrapping her arms around herself and looking at the waves. I followed at her down the beach, but didn't touch her. When we reached the water, she immediately removed her shoes and took several steps through the wet sand. She shivered and looked out to sea.

I remembered how, not so long ago, I'd wondered if she was a monster—a monster that had taken Xion from me for no good reason at all. But now all I could see was a gentle and vulnerable girl that held her elbows in her hands and watched the waves as they brushed and pulled at her toes. She had never thought of herself—not for one moment in her short half-life. And now it occurred to me that she harbored some kind of guilt in confessing her feelings for me. As though they were a fault.

"Naminé," I said softly, reaching for her. She didn't flinch away this time, so I took her in my arms and cradled her against my chest. She buried her face in my shirt.

"I feel like I don't deserve you," she said, her voice muffled and forlorn. "I feel like I've done something to you… something that you should be angry at me for."

I was slightly stunned. Of course, she wouldn't be able to remember Xion; she wasn't a part of Sora like I was. But I was fairly certain now that she had some sort of a trace of guilt left. Guilt for something that had never been her fault, really.

"Don't worry," I assured her in a soft voice. "You've never done anything to be ashamed of, Naminé. Trust me." Or trust Xion, at least.

"How do you know?" she whispered. Her eyes were glazed over with pain.

I wasn't sure how much to tell her. I took a deep breath. "Because… I found a lot of peace while I was living inside of Sora. I know who I am now. Probably for the first time in the entire course of my existence. And I know the truth about you. You're a perfect person."

She looked up at me, so weepy, and yet so heartbreakingly beautiful at the same time. "Really?" There was hope in her voice.

"Really," I replied. Weird. It felt like our roles had been reversed. Usually she was the one comforting _me_.

She sighed, as though an enormous weight had been lifted from her tiny shoulders. Then she reached up and placed a hand on my cheek. "So… it's okay? Truly?"

"Yeah," I said resolutely. What had happened to Xion was over now. She was at peace with Sora and I. The blame didn't lie with anyone, really—least of all this ghost of a girl before me, who'd just pretty much just admitted that she loved me.

That she loved me…?

I took her chin between my fingers and tilted her face toward mine. In the dark, her eyes were like the ocean at night—tranquil and reflective of the moonlight. They eased closed as I leaned toward her and touched my lips to hers. She ran her palms up my chest, then wrapped her arms around my neck, just like Kairi had wrapped her arms around Sora.

We kissed for a long time, breathing and touching and feeling. There was nothing else like it in the entire world—and therefore nothing for me to compare it to. But the stirrings I felt inside me were stronger than they'd ever been.

She was smiling blissfully when we finally broke apart. Then she sighed: a sweet and satisfactory sound. "I don't think their love was _ever_ ours."

Her voice was alluring and, unless I imagined it, a bit smug. She continued, "It may have strengthened ours, but… ours was always there. All along."

"Yeah," I breathed.

I kissed her mouth once—twice—a third time. Then my kisses wandered to her cheek, pulling and sucking and reveling in its softness. I ran my lips across her cheekbone, then caught her earlobe for a brief taste. She shivered beneath my hands as I fondled the smooth, prominent bump behind her ear with my lips.

She was so beautiful. Her neck flowed, pure and undisturbed, like a waterfall to the cool pooling of skin at her collarbone. She smelled so sweet. And so I traced the contour of her neck with the tip of my nose. I would memorize her. And this night would be with me forever, no matter what tomorrow would bring.

She ran her hands through my hair as I kissed her collarbone. Her fingers traced each coarse blonde spike and she occasionally kissed the top of my head. It was as though she were indulging herself in its smell.

After a while, she caught my face in her hands and pulled it back to hers. We shared three long kisses, and then she sighed and wrapped her arms around my waist. I buried my face in her hair.

There was a sudden smattering of explosions in the air. We looked toward the mainland. Firework after firework exploded, sending their shimmering fingers outward until it seemed that they were taking over the entire sky. The noise was enough to make Naminé's tiny frame vibrate beneath my arms.

_Boom, boom boom boom…. piff… piff… crash…_ and then a shower of sparks that fell like ashes to ocean below.

And after that brief moment of splendor, the show was over.

"Hmm," Naminé murmured against my chest. "That was beautiful."

"Very," I agreed, running my hands up and down her arms. "Too bad it has to end."

"Mm-hmm…" she sighed. "It _really_ is."

I looked down at her, curious as to what she _really_ meant, and was startled to see that she was gazing down at her own hand with nothing short of misery written across her face.

"What? What is it?" I demanded, grabbing the hand. I couldn't see anything wrong with it—not yet at least.

She pulled it away, then held it up against the sky.

I could easily see the moon behind it. I could see the landmarks and imperfections on its silvery surface—and I could even see a couple of stars that twinkled behind her pinkie and index finger. She was fading. And fast.

"What the heck?" I cried, looking down at my own hands. They were just as faded. Through them, I could see my legs and the beach below. When I looked up at Naminé, I could see the outline of the island behind her head.

"It's time to go," she said forlornly. "We can't exist outside of them like this. Not for very long, anyway."

I looked at her for a long moment, then reached out and pulled her into my arms. "This is the most I've _ever_ existed," I said, almost fiercely. There was a certain tightness in my throat.

"Me too," she said. Her hands were a little too light on my back; her body entirely too weightless. There was hardly any substance to us, now.

We held each other for a long moment. "Why does this hurt so much?" I wondered aloud.

She didn't bother to answer. Because what words would change the fact that it _did _hurt? Existence was a painful thing. It was a thing we could have escaped if we'd faded back into darkness like most Nobodies.

But it was also a thing that allowed kisses to be trailed down its neck. It was a thing that smelled salt on the wind and a thing that tasted Naminé on its tongue. It was a thing that almost made it all worthwhile—the pain, the lacking of a body of its own. Everything.

I sighed and touched her vastly transparent cheek. "Well… we'd better go back."

She nodded. "Sora and Kairi need us."

I thought about that for a moment, then laughed. "Yeah, you're right. They really do."

She smiled. I put my arm around her, and we began our somewhat heavy-hearted walk back toward the tree house. The moonlight flooded through us as if we weren't there, and we left no shadows on the ground. Our feet barely seemed to touch the sand. We were like the wind—stirring the lives of the living, the lives that were like the waves and palm trees that bent beneath our influence. And yet we weren't really there at all… we were merely a force. A force that whispered and shrieked and sighed in its frustration.

Then again, we existed. And I could still taste Naminé on my lips.

"Naminé?" I asked again.

She turned her face upward; it looked like nothing but an etching on a sheet of glass, now. "Hmm?"

"I'm glad we exist."

It wouldn't have meant much to anyone else. But she understood—the pros and cons of our half-lives were a constant weight on both of our minds, after all. And so she ghosted up on her tip-toes and planted a feathery kiss on my cheek.

"So am I, Roxas," she breathed. "Whatever else there is or isn't in this life, at least there will always be you and me."

I gave her one last kiss, a kiss that neither of us could really feel anymore. After we had broken apart, I couldn't shake the feeling that I wouldn't kiss her again for a long, long time. But that fact was almost as weightless as we were in the moonlight—because existence reigned supreme.

"Always," I repeated.

And then we pointed our feet toward Sora and Kairi.


End file.
